According to a report from Article 18, a London-based religious freedom nongovernmental organization, persecution against Christians in the Islamic Republic of Iran, has increased by six times in 2024. Recently, three Christians rearrested for their faith in Iran were subjected to torture and asked to renounce their faith in God in a written statement.
The NGO released an annual report, titled “The Tip of the Iceberg,” in partnership with Open Doors, Christian Solidarity Worldwide, and Middle East Concern. They found that Iranian Christians were sentenced to a combined total of 250 years in prison in 2024. This was six times more than in 2023. Article 18 reported that 96 Christians were sentenced to a combined 263 years in prison, $800,000 in fines, and 37 years of internal exile.
Article 18 stated in the latest report: “At least 139 Christians were arrested in Iran in 2024 on account of their religious beliefs or activities, 80 were detained and 77 were charged.” They added, “At the end of 2024, at least 18 Christians were still serving sentences related to their faith. There were also reports of detained Christians being physically tortured.”
The report follows three Christians who faced persecution; Jahangir Alikhani, Hamed Malamiri, and Gholam Eshaghi, who were arrested last year by agents with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. They were among 20 Christians who were arrested a year earlier by The Ministry of Intelligence. According to the document, IRGC agents rearrested the men and took them to a detention center.
The men were charged with “propagating a religion contrary to Islam” and “collaborating with foreign governments.” The three men were released on Nov. 17, 2024, bail was set at 1 billion tomans, which would cost $15,000. The three Christians were subjected to physical and psychological torture. They were also told to write letters renouncing their faith and apologizing for their actions.
Article 18 states, “On the day of their release, another member of the group, Javad Amini, was rearrested and transferred to the Sari detention center.” The article adds, “Mr Amini’s wife, Farzaneh Ahmadi, went home to discover it ransacked, and minutes later received another unwelcome visit from the agents, who claimed they were looking for her husband’s phone and Bibles.”
They report that “The agents later returned for a third visit and confiscated several Bibles and other Christian books, as well as Mr. Amini’s notebooks related to his study of Christian theology.” They state that Agents with the Ministry of Intelligence and IRGC interrogated Amini’s wife and subjected her to “severe psychological pressure.”
A total of 11 Christians were put on trial at Branch 102 of the Criminal Court of Nowshahr. The indictment, written by Prosecutor Mohammad Reza Ebrahimi, said those on trial had identified themselves as Christians in their defense. According to the prosecution, the group was guilty of a crime because they had set up plans to teach about Christianity.
He wrote, “And this is supported by the messages exchanged in their phones,” as well as through the “Gospels and other Christian literature found in their possession.” The report notes, “Each arrest was carried out by IRGC intelligence agents, who sought to charge them under a provision within the amended Article 500 of the Islamic Penal Code, which calls for the maximum punishment of up to 10 years’ imprisonment in cases where the individual has received ‘financial or organizational help from outside the country.”